Study Of Diversity And Spatial Association Of Mammals And Land Fowls In Gansu Liancheng National Nature Reserve,China

The development of nature reserves in China has entered the stage of adjustment and improvement,and change from "species centered" to "ecosystem centered".There is a gap in the protection of key species such as flagship species and umbrella species.It is necessary to strengthen the research and understanding of the community to improve the integrity and effectiveness of protection.Taking Liancheng National Nature Reserve in Gansu Province as the research area,this study collected the spatial distribution data of species from July 2018 to June 2020 through 144 camera traps,analyzed the diversity and spatial and temporal distribution pattern of mammals and land fowls,and constructed a spatial association network of species using spatial analysis methods,and carried out quantitative analysis on the structural characteristics,interspecific association attributes and dynamic changes of the network,The main research results are as follows:(1)A total of 15 species of mammals and 6 species of pheasnts were detected in this survy.The Capreolus pygargus,Vulpes vulpes,Marmota himalayana,Meles leucurus,Crossoptilon auritum are widely distributed in the Nature Reserve,with relatively large population,and are dominant species in the Nature Reserve.(2)Most species have seasonal changes in spatial distribution.Meles leucurus,Marmota himalayana,Ochotona erythrotis hibernate from October to March of the next year.The Martes foina,Cervus nippon,Cervus canadensis,Tetrastes sewerzowi,Ithaginis cruentus,Tetraophasis obscurus and other species may migrate to areas outside the Reserve in winter.(3)The spatial analysis shows that a spatial association network consisting of 19 species,including33 pairs of interspecific associations.The Meles leucurus,Prionailurus bengalensis,Crossoptilon auritum,Vulpes vulpes,Marmota himalayana,Phasianus colchicus,Ithaginis cruentus,Tetrastes sewerzowi,Ochotona erythrotis are the core species of the network and play an important role in maintaining the network.There are 8 pairs of asymmetric spatial associations and 25 pairs of symmetric spatial associations in the network.(4)The spatial association network of species has seasonal dynamics.Eight species,including Vulpes vulpes,Crossoptilon auritum,Meles leucurus,Ithaginis cruentus and their associated structures are the core basis for the stability of the network in dynamic changes.(5)Ecological release occurred in the community as large carnivores and some ungulates were decreased.Small and medium-sized carnivores and pheasants play an important role in the community.In the absence of predation restrictions,the populations of Cevus nippon、C.canadensis and Capreolus pygargus will continue to expand.The results indicate that the species spatial association network can effectively show the complex association of species in the community,and the asymmetry analysis can clarify the association attributes(competition,deviation,mutual benefit)between species.When formulating protection measures,we can understand the interspecific relationship of species in a multi-dimensional and integral way through species spatial association network,which is helpful to improve the scientificity and effectiveness of protection measures.The construction of species spatial association network by spatial analysis can be a basic method for wildlife community monitoring and integral protection.